New Year's Party Chit-chat Dilemma

I've been invited to a pre-New Year's Eve party on Sunday evening, an annual ritual with several of our acquaintances. They are all college grads and believe that they are fairly politically astute. Conversation always turns to politics which arouses me from my food-fireplace-induced stupor. As this group is left-leaning in their political posturing, save one lonely soul, discussion will center around the '08 election and which Democrat will be best. My wife and I are also invited to another party a few weeks later with the not-so subtle title, "Election '08 Get-together."

No doubt tomorrow evening one in the crowd will ask the same question that I have been asked by this group for the past several years: What's the name of your blog? They never remember and/or they couldn't care less, which is fine, as long as they are getting the information that they need. Information not only on who's who, but on what the GOP has been doing to suppress the vote of urban black voters. I have posted stories on that issue and receive few comments.

Surely most folks at the gathering on Sunday will expect an easy Democratic win, believing that the nation is fed up with Republicans. Yet they need to be reminded of their naiveté in both 2000 and 2004 when the GOP political machine maneuvered behind the scenes to skew the votes for the Republicans. Blind hope is easily trumped by determined scoundrels.

Microdot, a co-author of this blog, posted a comment yesterday that struck me. He said, "...but to be informed is the best defense against the usual gang of scoundrels next attempt to exploit this for their own terrorist fear mongering ends!"

Although he had directed this comment to the Bhutto assassination, it surely is relevant to any political situation, towards any group of thugs and deviants.

I will challenge the party-goers to wake up from their Pollyanna-like dreams and spread the word to all of their friends and acquaintances to be alert to the dirty election-day tricks that are already in place not only here in Ohio but across the nation. "to be informed is the best defense against the usual gang of scoundrels!"